Too Far Gone
by Cassie Breegan
Summary: This contract with the Phantomhive boy, extended as it had been, had been the final test.  He had to laugh quietly to himself. They thought they were done with him.  Those poor fools...
1. Prologue

The demon's footsteps rang loudly on the stone floor, breaking the deafening silence in the room. He approached the figure at its center. Soft but clear, his voice joined the echoes of his footfalls.

"Check..."

The young man took a deep, shuddering breath, wide eyes surveying the carnage around him.

"...Mate," He finished, turning halfway to look at the creature that for so long had been his protector. The black-clad butler wore the same smile he always had; a smile pleasant enough on the surface, but truly dark and empty as his soul.

He had had plenty of time to find every nuance and subtle cruelty in that smile, and now could only see naked lust and malice in it.

"Five years..." The demon spoke again. "Five..._long_...years..."

Ciel could only nod in agreement. For five years Sebastian had posed as his dutiful and devoted butler, lying in wait for this very moment. Waiting for every last piece that opposed him to topple over, and leave only the two of them on the board.

"...And now the knight betrays the king," The boy murmured, eyes straying again to the gore at his feet. Sebastian had gladly and rather messily killed all but the ringleader of the cult; the man had been broken and pleading at the demon's feet when Ciel had ordered him to stop. Infuriatingly obedient, he had immediately stepped away, grinning at his master.

"_Would you like to finish this one off yourself, my lord?"_

_His eyes had been glowing with delight at having been able to cause such pain and destruction, things he had for five years been unable to truly enjoy as he pleased. He had reveled in it, elegant, poised, and agile as ever even when tearing limbs from torsos and heads from necks. He had obviously-terrifyingly-enjoyed every shriek of fear, every cry and yowl of pain, and every drop of blood spilled._

_While Ciel had not derived such pleasure from the debacle, there was a twisted kind of closure, the kind that can only be felt after the worst kind of wrong has been repaid, that began to knit over the old, half-scarred wounds in his soul. And the wounds that for years had only pulsed with mild pain suddenly shrieked again at the sight of his most hated tormenter begging for mercy on his hands and knees. He had barked the order to Sebastian without being truly aware of speaking it._

_He ignored the half-mocking comment of his servant, stepping forward and drawing the pistol that he carried. Six bullets, and he had yet to fire one._

_With an expression of the deadliest calm, he pressed the muzzle to the man's forehead._

"_P-please-no-!"_

_He watched the last vestiges of desperate hope drain from the man's eyes as he pulled back the hammer._

"_Why would I listen to your pleas, when you were deaf to mine?"_

Bang.

_The man's eyes glazed over and shot out of focus as he fell heavily onto his side. And yet, once again, Ciel cocked the gun and shot. Then for a third time. Then, fanning the hammer with his palm, he emptied the cylinder into the man, who had been dead before he had hit the ground._

"_He is quite dead, my lord," came the demon's reply. He mocked the boy with his old title, grinning all the while. Silence fell between them for a long while, the blood-drenched demon and his pristine prey. It remained until Sebastian approached, speaking that one word, reminding him of their contract, and pulling him from his memories of the very recent past._

"Betrays?"

Ciel realized Sebastian was speaking again, and half turned. The demon continued, easily and arrogantly.

"Was this not decided upon the minute I joined you? 'Betrayal' denotes the unexpected, the improbable revolt of one thing against another. I have not-and in many ways, _can_not-betray you. You have been aware for the entirety of our contract that, in the end, the king would fall to the knight."

Ciel could not argue. The terms of their contract had been simple and clear: the demon's servitude in exchange for his soul. He had known this for five years; had come to accept it, become terrified of the concept, and swung back and forth between loathing and looking for comfort in his dark guardian, all in equal measure. It was cyclic; he would resign himself to his fate, not think about it for weeks or months...and then a look, a passing comment, or a thinly veiled threat would shatter that resolve and he would become, yet again, the terrified child he was. He would never know how unsuccessful he had been at hiding his reactions from his servant, or that every single 'reminder' had been absolutely intentional.

He found himself saying the words he'd sworn never to say when the time came, breaking the pact he'd mad with himself. He had sworn never to beg.

"Perhaps-just a few days-time to set everything in order-"

"You know quite well I will not grant you that," came the cool and amused reply.

"But-Lizzie! And Maylene and Bard and Finny and Tanaka-!"

"Will find ways to move on. Albeit, in your cousin's case, it may take quite the while."

"My estate-the Funtom company-"

"Grasping at straws now, hm?"

"The...my duty to the Queen..."

"Grasping at straws indeed..." Sebastian confirmed, shaking his head with a sigh. "Even the Little Lord Phantomhive is not too proud to beg."

The words were like a slap in the face, but once again, it was the truth. That left only one way out...

"Go ahead," Sebastian said, still grinning easily...and hungrily. "Run, if you want. But remember..." He reached out-Ciel shuddered as he watched the demon's glossy black nails lengthen into claws-and brushed the black patch away from the boy's eye. "That mark will allow me to find you. Wherever you go, Ciel Phantomhive, I will never be farther away than any shadow in the room."

Ciel let out a low moan as he clutched at his hair, knowing he was bound and had to uphold his side of the bargain. Sebastian could only smile more widely.

"Shall I take my prize now, or are you going to take off? It would only take me all of a second to catch you, of course, and in even that short amount of time you will have expended all of my patience."

Choice; the opportunity for redemption; he knew he had given all of them up. The demon smiled benignly again, his head tilting to one side.

"The doors are open, my lord. Despite myself, I may enjoy the pursuit...watching that fear you could never truly hide spill out on the surface at last..."

"_No_." He smacked the demon's hand away from his cheek, suddenly repulsed by his touch. "I won't run. Take it, then. Take your payment."

The demon stared, nonplussed, for a moment, then gave a single, soft laugh.

"Ah, there's that old spirit. You can't run. You can't...'give me the satisfaction', is that right?" He stepped closer to the boy, gazing down at him from a gulf of inches. "How like you. Stubborn to the end."

"Isn't that like a child?" He returned, his voice shaking lightly. "'I'll do it because I want to, not because you tell me to' and all that."

"Very much so," The demon's voice was smooth and wry. "But the time for talking is long since passed, and as we speak the reapers may be bearing down on us as your death approaches."

"They can still track my soul?" In spite of what he faced, the boy's natural curiosity won out against horror and fear. The demon's face was still expressionless.

"I'm not entirely sure. But if they can, I would rather enjoy my meal in peace than have to fight them for it."

As his eyes lit to their burning crimson, fear shot down Ciel's spine. He remained rooted to the spot, unable to move, transfixed and terrified by the demon's eyes.

"You won't feel any pain," He was saying with that same cruel smile. "Just...heat."

Before he could react to the demon's words, he was surrounded by him; darkness seemed to accompany him, shadows sweeping out of the corners and flowing off the walls to wrap around them. He could see only out of his contracted eye, and even then could only see the glowing seal on his ex-butler's hand and the vibrant shine of his burning eyes. He could only perceive the heat Sebastian had mentioned from his other senses; it rolled over his skin, invaded his nose, seemed even to pound in his ears and taint the very air enough to taste it. The dark and the heat pressed in on all sides, and as terror finally flooded every inch of him, he felt the demon's hands on him and the mocking mouth on his own. The embrace was gentle but impossible to break, as was the touch of the demon's lips. The heat that pressed in on him seemed to blossom within him as well, spreading and seeking a way out. It built in his chest, burning, spreading, and finally consuming him in its white-hot blaze.

The boy's frame went limp in his arms as Sebastian lifted his head, closing his eyes as strength flooded his body and hunger's clawing hands began to recede. He knew that the one soul would only keep at his hunger at bay, but after so long the boy's soul was simply too good to take in slowly. Savoring the lingering sins on his tongue, he arranged the body with a grin on his face. Lying serenely down as if in sleep, his arms crossed over his chest, spotless in all the blood around him. What a discovery for the next man to walk here.

He stood and turned to the door, walking calmly out as if nothing had transpired there. If not to fight him for the boy's soul, the reapers would be there to collect the souls of those he had killed; it wouldn't do to dwell.

He laughed to himself quietly as he walked; everything had gone perfectly. To pass unrecognized under their noses, on more than one occasion... the time had finally come. Countless arbitrary contracts and countless names bestowed upon him; they had never found out his true name and by now tracking him would be near impossible. This contract with the Phantomhive boy, extended as it had been, had been the final test.

He had to laugh quietly to himself. They thought they were done with him.

_Those poor fools..._


	2. Chapter One

Grell Sutcliff sighed through gritted teeth and a sneer as he left the office of his superior. William was in an exceptionally bad mood after the loss of the Phantomhive boy's soul to the demon, and had just spent the past half hour chewing him out for it, despite his flawless collection and recording of the other souls that were due to be reaped. William's coldness paired with Grell's disappointment at the demon's leaving had been a volatile clash, culminating in the accusation that he had purposefully allowed the demon to take the boy's soul.

The following argument had likely been heard by the entire complex. Tired after a particularly demanding evening of work and not taking to being treated the way William had deemed appropriate, Grell had eventually held up a hand to silence him and flung his reports across the room, noting with smug pleasure that as they hit William's desk, they opened and the papers flew everywhere.

"Figure it out yourself," was all he said, snatching up his scythe and leaving, slamming the door to annoy the other man even more.

"...So...what the hell happened?"

Not known for kindness towards others when he was angry, Grell ignored the simple question posed to him by his colleague and brushed past him, storming off.

"Grell-?"

Persistent and playful when he was off the clock, Ron reminded him of a puppy at times...and as such, he decided that if he was going to be nipping his ankles today, he would earn himself a swift kick in the ribs. Again, he didn't respond to the question, storming off down the hallway.

"Um...are you alright-?"

He whirled in a seething flash of crimson, his limited patience run out.

"_I. Am. Fine. And I do not. Want. To discuss it._"

The proximity of Grell's teeth to his nose made Ron take a step back, nodding.

"I-I just wanted to know if you were okay...you're...not...yourself..."

Grell's eyes, narrowed and flashing in fury, rolled in impatience.

"Go chase another skirt, Knox," he fairly snarled, turning again to continue on his way, leaving the blond speechless.

Grell didn't get two steps further down the hallway before another voice-already hoarse from shouting-reached his ears again.

"_Sutcliff-!_"

"I'm off the clock," he threw back, not turning around again.

"Come here this instant and clean up the mess you've made-"

"_No_."

Ron could only watch, dumbfounded by Grell's actions.

"_Grell Sutcliff-!_"

The door at the end of the hall slammed loudly as it closed behind the crimson reaper. Looking down the other end of the hall, Knox could see William fighting to reign in his temper instead of following and strangling Grell.

"What's eating him, boss?" He managed shakily, slowly approaching the dark-haired man. William didn't respond immediately, pushing up his glasses and pinching the bridge of his nose.

"You must have heard. The walls here aren't particularly thick."

The younger followed William back into his office, stared for a moment at the papers scattered everywhere, and eventually began to shuffle them together to be sorted.

"You don't really think he just _let_ him have the soul, do you?"

"I wouldn't put it past him...disgustingly enamored as he is..."

"Ah, come on, Will~" Ron nudged his superior's side with his elbow, grinning. "You know he's only really got eyes for you."

"Do _not_ say such ridiculous and inappropriate things."

"Oh, don't you take your argument out on me, too..." Sighing, he picked up the last of the papers and began sorting them into individual piles. In short order, William snatched them from him, obviously displeased with his method of organization.

"I'm just trying to help, boss..." He sighed again and stretched. "Sometimes I really hate being the only in here without some kind of stick up my ass..."

The glare William threw in his direction was icier even than the ones he'd received from Grell. He hastily murmured an apology and began sorting papers into the rearranged stacks William had made.

"I appreciate your attempts to help, Ronald, but they are unnecessary," William finally said, picking up the papers Ron had put down and sorting them sequentially between his fingers.

"Anything else I can do?"

"Leave," was the clipped reply. Ron could only roll his eyes and do as told, eager to get away from his uptight boss and unwind.

As the door shut behind Ronald, William dropped heavily into his chair with a sigh. He hadn't meant to argue with Grell. He hadn't meant to throw out the unfounded accusation, and he certainly hadn't intended to so thoroughly alienate one of the only people in the office who seemed to enjoy his company. Disruptive as his presence was, Grell's was often the only smile warmly directed toward him.

He would have to apologize. He knew that, but didn't want to admit it. Putting it off wouldn't do any good, he knew, but he was going to anyway. With a deeper, heavier sigh, he set to finishing sorting out the files.

}~X~X~X~X~X~{

"Grell? It's me."

When he received no response, he knocked again, a little more loudly, on the door to Grell's room.

"Grell, open the door. I know you're in there."

Still nothing. Giving up on knocking, he tried to doorknob and found the room unlocked. He stepped inside and glanced around the familiar space. Ordinarily, it was kept fairly neat, but today it was a mess. Books had been thrown off shelves; the pillows from the bed had been flung across the room; the red coat he wore was balled up in a corner, also appearing to have been thrown. His gloves were on top of it, but the redhead was nowhere to be found.

"...Grell."

"Get out," was his greeting, spoken in a low voice from the adjoining bathroom. William stepped around the corner to find Grell standing before the mirror in the bathroom, gripping the sides of the sink. His chin rested on his chest, his hair hiding his face.

"I wanted to talk to you."

"And I regret to say that I don't share the sentiment," He spat back, his grip tightening. "Please leave."

"You're hardly being rational, Grell-"

"No, but at least I'm being polite about it," He snapped, finally looking up. "I can't say that you were the same earlier."

He turned his face away again almost immediately, but William had already seen his puffy eyes and tearstained cheeks.

"...I came to apologize," He said softly. "It was wrong of me to react that way."

"Whatever."

"That's it? You're going to keep brushing me off?"

"I'm going to remain as civil as I possibly can," Grell said through gritted teeth, looking up at the ceiling and leaning back. "Something else that you have only a rough and uninformed idea of."

"I didn't realized civility encompassed backhanded comments," He returned. "Shall we truly be civil with each other now? At the very least?"

"Please leave, Will. I accept your apology and I would like to be alone."

"You know that never worked on me."

He stepped closer and reached to touch Grell's shoulder, but the smaller man slapped his hand away and stepped back.

"Don't touch me."

There was a kind of hollow fear in his eyes, and what Ronald had said to William earlier sounded in the back of his mind.

_You know he's only really got eyes for you..._

He had hit the nail on the head there, it seemed. Suddenly it made sense why Grell had thrown himself headlong at the demon.

"Do you honestly miss him?"

"_Who_."

"Michaelis."

Grell looked away again, searching for a way out, but William blocked the only means of escape. He shifted, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning his hip against the sink, his back to William.

"You know who I miss. And he would never have treated me the way you did earlier."

William looked away, closing his eyes.

"...Then he's a better man than I am."

"And just when did that happen? I can't seem to pinpoint it. I can't for the _life_ of me find the exact moment when you changed."

The sarcasm dripping from Grell's voice all but left a puddle on the floor at his feet.

"...We agreed that it was the most appropriate course of action, Grell. You can't have expected that nothing would change-"

"I expected things to change, William. Just not to the extent that they did."

"And is that why _you_ changed? Hm?"

Grell didn't react to the comment.

"You weren't always quite like this. Enthusiastic, yes. Overzealous and easily excited, yes. But not to the extent you've hence reached."

He still remained silent.

"...To be honest, I preferred your hair shorter," William remarked. "Now, there was at least a logical reasoning for why I began acting differently. Can you justify yours?"

"I have no intentions of rehashing the past with you tonight," Grell finally answered. "And if you don't know why I changed, then you don't know anything about me at all."

"The permanence of it defies the logic of needing to 'protect' yourself."

Grell turned halfway, his glare sad, yet cold at the same time.

"A wound that gets irritated on a daily basis will never heal. It'll only get worse."

"So you attempted to distract yourself. First with that woman, then with the demon. And now what, you have nothing else to use?"

"No." Grell had turned his face away again, but couldn't hide the way his voice shook. He barely spoke in a whisper, as if hoping it would conceal the quavering quality. "...Nothing _works_."

William was silent. He wasn't sure what he had expected the other man to say, but that wasn't it.

"...I...I can't stop thinking about...before," Grell continued. After so long, the floodgates had opened, and he was powerless to stop what flowed forth. "About the way you were-the way _we_ were...!" He buried his face in his hands, pushing his bangs of his face as his hands clenched into fists around the thick locks of his hair. "Just because it was...more professional to...stop...doesn't mean it changed anything. I only agreed with you because I knew you wouldn't accept it any other way. ...One word from me, and you would have let that opportunity pass you by. I couldn't do that to you. Not after you'd worked so hard."

He paused, lifting his head again, smiling wanly over his shoulder.

"And even trying to let you move forward, I wind up holding you back."

It was a rare glimpse into the earnestness behind Grell's careless demeanor. Even when they had been...

_Been what? _William wondered. It took a moment of searching his extensive vocabulary to decide that 'intimate' was, while possibly misleading, the best word. In that window, where much of their time was spent together during or after work hours, Grell had often been serious; but glimpses into the workings of his mind, his aspirations and insecurities, were few and far between. That was when William had been willing to talk about himself, and Grell content to listen, learning all he could about the other man. It only now struck William that the exchange of information had been so incredibly one-sided.

"You're right," He said softly. "Not about holding me back-but that I don't know much about you. I know your personality, and I can more or less assume the driving emotions behind what you do...but not much else. I don't know about your past...what you wanted for your future...what you even want now. I know why you do the things you do...but nothing else about you."

"You never asked," was the response.

"...And you never volunteered that information...because..." William considered him for a moment. "...You didn't think I cared about it. You thought it would be out of place for you to talk about yourself."

"Because I was afraid," He corrected. "Of rejection. Of you deciding I wasn't something you wanted. But an enigma...at least there's intrigue there. To keep you near me. Every now and then, you would ask me something. And I always told you as little as possible, trying to keep you curious. You never pressed the matter, so I assumed you never wanted more than those basic answers that meant nothing without another explanation. Which, in turn, told me you weren't really interested."

"...I never pressed you because you were so obviously uncomfortable answering questions about yourself. And why on earth would _you_ want someone who was that self-centered-?"

"You were too kind to really be self-centered."

William's baffled silence prompted Grell to continue again.

"You used to be shy. Almost uncertain. And the way you spoke...the way..." He faltered. "The way you spoke, even about yourself, wasn't boastful. It was all...straight from the heart."

"What were you going to say?"

Grell remained silent. William stepped forward again.

"...I think I know. It was...the way we touched."

Grell gasped softly as he felt William's hands on his waist.

"I said-!"

"You said you missed me."

The familiar voice was soft in his ear, weighted by the new understanding from their conversation. William's warmth was familiar and comforting as he pulled Grell to his chest and wrapped his arms around him. The smaller man couldn't help but reach up to hold the arms that encircled him.

"I do miss you..."

"Even after all this time...?"

"Of course...!" Grell buried his face in William's elbow. "...I love you William. I always will...always."

"Tell me what you were going to say," he implored gently. "I want to hear you describe it."

"This is cruel, William-"

He shuddered as the dark-haired reaper pressed a kiss to the hollow behind his jawbone, just below his ear.

"Did I forget to mention how much I've missed you?"

"Yes..."

"Oh." He nuzzled the spot gently. "Then I apologize again."

Grell pulled away just enough to turn and look at his superior's face.

"You...missed _me_?"

"That surprises you?"

Grell's stunned silence was answer enough. William smiled gently.

"You think I wouldn't? Those kisses of yours were intoxicating."

"Please let go of me..."

William blinked, his brow furrowing.

"Why-?"

"Because any minute now you're going to snap out of...whatever phase you're in...and I'll be right back where I started."

"And where would that be."

"Watching you walk away...and telling myself it's for the best."

When William only stared at him, he pulled away and gently pushed past him, sighing as he looked at the stare of disarray his room was in and beginning to clean.

"Grell, do you think I couldn't-"

"I think you would come to the same conclusion you arrived at last time. It's just the way you are, Will. Your professional mind wins every time."

"You're just making up excuses."

"No." Grell's tone was even and heavy. "I'm making a judgment based off what _I_ know about _you_. You are a goal-oriented and work-driven person who sees everything else as secondary. You're used to being alone. It doesn't bother you to spend entire days or weeks on your own. And I'm not going to pretend we're 'in a relationship' if the only time you come to me is when you want something. I'm not some...whore you can call up once or twice a month and then ignore."

"You know I don't think of you that way."

Grell paused, looking back at the man he so loved, his eyes tired and empty.

"How _do_ you think of me, William? Even then, I was never sure. Now, all I can assume is that I've become some kind of punching bag. Just someone to abuse when you're overworked. Because you know in the back of your mind that I'll always come back." He sighed. "Or you think I will."

It was a moment before he could articulate a response, shocked by what Grell had said.

"...What are you talking about-?"

"A beaten dog will still come when its master calls it. Shaking and with its tail between its legs, it will still obey. Knowing it is only getting called for more pain, it returns every time." He looked up from the book he was idly flipping through. "I'm not a dog, William. There will come a time when I won't return. When you'll find that link is irreparably broken. ...You've been chipping away at it for decades."

He stepped closer and laid a hand on Grell's, sighing softly as the redhead turned his face away.

"Then what do I do before it's broken that badly...and you won't let me try to fix it?"

When Grell didn't respond, William pulled him to his chest again with little resistance. This time he turned, resting his head on William's shoulder and hesitantly wrapping his arms around the dark-haired man's waist.

He breathed a sigh of relief as he felt Grell relax against him and held him tight. Pressing a kiss into the soft locks of red hair, William felt, just for a moment, all the stress that constantly plagued him melt away. He relaxed as well, closing his eyes and remembering the sweet scent of Grell's perfume.


	3. Chapter Two

"Time to wake up..."

With a groan, he rolled over and buried his face in the pillow. The other laughed softly, reaching to shake him again.

"Come on. We're going to be late."

"No..."

"William, don't you have a perfect attendance record? You wouldn't want to ruin that...we've only got five minutes until you'd have to punch in."

"_What-?"_

At those words, the dark-haired man sat bolt upright, scrambling for the glasses that should have been on his nightstand. But they weren't in his room; he'd stayed with Grell that night-

The redhead laughed again and slipped them onto his face, brushing a lock of hair that stuck straight up to the side.

"Relax...I wouldn't let you sleep in that late. It's too important to you." With a little kiss, he stood again and returned to fixing his hair and makeup.

"That wasn't funny..." Rubbing sleep from his eyes, William semi-consciously drew the blankets up to cover his chest, making Grell laugh again.

"Now you're shy?" he jerked the blankets down again, teasing his companion. "Composed as you may be awake, you sleep spread-eagled with your mouth hanging open and the blankets around your ankles..."

He giggled as William turned a bright shade of red and began rooting around for his clothes.

"Folded on the dresser...your shoes are by the door."

As he stood and began to get dressed, he realized this was part of an old, familiar routine. It would take a few runs to get it running smoothly again, but he began to remember how things went. Kissed awake, warm and content; watching Grell get ready or taking a quick shower; his clothes neatly folded and waiting for him (Grell always seemed to be up earlier than he was-he blamed it on all the time he spent perfecting his appearance); Grell's hands smoothing out wrinkles and doing up buttons more often than not; a moment or two (or more, if there was time) of closeness before heading out and starting their day. As it all came back to him, he realized for the first time just how much he'd missed it.

"You're right..." He said, laughing a little bit as he got dressed. Across the room, Grell looked at him in the mirror.

"Hm?"

"I'm an idiot in a lot of ways." Smiling in spite of what he was saying, he finished doing up his pants and crossed to pull Grell to his chest for a moment. "I don't miss what I've had until I have it again."

The mirror betrayed the sweet blush Grell tried to hide. William dipped his head to kiss his neck before stepping away to finish getting dressed.

"Come on. I'm not going to let you be late."

Grell sighed to himself and shook his head as William smiled back over his shoulder.

"I told you business would always win..."

"You said it yourself. It's who I am." He smiled again, shrugging into his jacket. "No changing that."

}~X~X~X~X~X~{

Grell was smiling to himself at some memory when he heard someone approaching him from behind; Ron greeted him with a wide grin when he turned.

"The boss's been in a great mood all week..." He teased. "How'd you manage it?"

"Manage what?" He asked, feigning innocence. Ron gave him a playfully knowing look.

"If anyone could mellow William out, it's you, Grell. You're the only one that really _wants_ to spend any time with him, anyway!"

"Wants to spend time with _who_, Ronald Knox?"

The blonde nearly jumped out of his skin and wondered how William always managed to appear right as he was saying things like that.

"Oh, no one, boss-you know, just talking-"

"Well, if you wouldn't mind, I'd like to get started on our fieldwork. Idle hands are the devil's playground."

Ronald sighed, rolling his eyes.

"Just because we're talking doesn't mean things are going to go to all hell, boss."

"It may be an idle saying in the mortal realm, but each second we waste here is one more opportunity for a soul to fall into a demon's hands," William responded, his tone clipped and brusque as always...but there was the ghost of a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. It didn't escape Grell and Ron's notice, and somehow lightened the stern command.

"Well, then, I don't think you should be here lecturing us on not being out reaping~" Grell put in, smiling widely. "Let's go!"

William sighed at the two customized scythes his subordinates carried-he much preferred the simple, effective, and _quiet_ standard issue-but couldn't complain as he handed them their updated lists. When it came down to it and they were serious about their work, they were incredibly efficient.

"On your ways, then," He said, glancing down at his own list as they walked down the hall to leave the building.

}~X~X~X~X~X~{

"...I'm not the _only_ one, Will..."

He wasn't surprised to find that Grell was with him. Nor did it surprise him that he had known exactly how much the joking, passing comment had stung.

"Yes you are," He answered honestly. "And we both know it."

"Will..."

"What does it matter? You said it yourself. I don't mind being alone. I'm used to it."

"Not if it bothers you this much..."

He sighed as he looked at his list again.

"Well, it isn't going to change."

"You could spend your spare time somewhere other than your office or your bedroom. Ron invites you to the parties all the time..."

"You know I don't-"

"But it wouldn't hurt to make an appearance. Show up. Have a drink. Excuse yourself gracefully."

William sighed and adjusted his glasses. Grell recognized the action as a mark of his frustration or confusion.

"We have work to do. Can we discuss this later? Alone?"

Grell looked at him skeptically, but eventually began to nod.

"I'll meet you in your quarters after we punch out. You'd better get out on time. I don't like to be kept waiting."

William laughed quietly to himself as he nodded.

"Of course. I get you in on time, you get me to leave on time. Fair enough, I suppose."

Grell looked at him for a moment, his expression a few degrees colder than neutral, but eventually decided that William had meant it as some kind of joke. He nodded, his eyes warming a bit as he opened his own book and looked for the first name on his list.

"Oh, Will?"

"Yes?"

Grell looked over his shoulder and grinned in a melancholy way.

"You could start being nicer around the office, too. Doing things to help people instead of harping on their incompetence."

And he was gone in a flash of red, leaving William to ponder his advice.

With a deep sigh, he set to retrieving the souls he was assigned to (as a supervisor, he shouldn't have had to be in the field at all, but Dispatch was nothing if not woefully understaffed), keeping tabs on the others through the master lists in his binder. One listed all the souls to be reaped on their shift; it was further split up into smaller lists that the individual reapers took care of. Each list-and the master list-would update as the souls were reaped, filling in cause of death and judgment, effectively letting him track his subordinates.

It was in between two clients-he preferred to think of them that way, as opposed to 'victims'-and as he was checking the progress of the others that he noticed something strange on Grell's list. One name was glowing softly-the cinematic record was playing for review-yet four or five names down, one had turned red. That could only mean one thing.

_But who could it be, now? Could one of them have gotten in without our knowing-?_

If Grell was reviewing a record, he wouldn't catch the danger in time-wouldn't even check his list for a few minutes at least, what with having to watch the record and record the judgment on the individual's page. Grumbling to himself, William put his own work on hold and headed out to take care of the problem. He had hoped that with the end of the Phantomhive contract, they would have some time to relax and not worry about demons feasting in their sector-but it seemed that the minute one left, another came to replace it.

He hated fighting demons, well aware that he was far from the most powerful member of his group. Surprisingly enough, that was Grell-and even he had fallen just short when it had come to fighting this last one. And despite what he said and how he acted, he had been trying to kill it.

Moving with easy grace and incredible speed across rooftops, William sighed to himself and hoped that whatever had gotten loose in London's streets couldn't cause as much chaos as the demon named Sebastian Michaelis almost had.


	4. Chapter Three

"I should have known it would be you."

At the vaguely familiar, nasally, and superiorly disgusted voice, the raven-haired demon lifted his head, pulling away from the body he held. It surprised him that this one had responded. It wasn't William's attention that he'd truly wanted; the enamored redhead was his true target, and would have been a much easier one.

Ah, well. He'd play the hand he was dealt. This would only make the game more interesting.

"...Well, well, well...if it isn't William Spears..."

"William _T._ Spears," the shinigami pointlessly corrected, adjusting his glasses and pointing his scythe at the demon's throat. "That soul is to be reaped by the Dispatch Officer Grell Sutcliff. Release him at once and your punishment will be minimal."

"And why would I want to do that?" He asked idly, still crouched possessively over the body. His former appearance-at least somewhat acceptable, and not entirely unlike William's own uniform-was gone now, leaving him unmasked and unmistakable for what he really was. "As for Grell," he continued, "I was hoping to draw him to me...now all I wonder is why you came instead." He glanced at the scythe inches from him and his eyes lit to a burning fuchsia. "I have not been and do not intend to be violent, and I suggest you kindly remove that scythe from my proximity, else I do so for you."

"Step away from that man."

"You're just a mite too late," He said, smirking easily. "Waking away now won't give him his soul back."

William's eyes narrowed and his finger twitched; Sebastian reacted with impeccable reflexes, bending impossibly backward to avoid the scythe as it lanced further forward and snapped shut inches from his nose. He flipped himself over, swinging an arm to capture the harmless pole of the scythe against his side. William barely had time to register the movement before it was completed, and as he was formulating a plan, the demon turned and jerked hard on his scythe, hard enough to pull it from his grasp. Acutely aware of the implications of losing his weapon, William instantly cast about for another, but nothing presented itself.

"Oh, at least you know you don't stand a chance without it," the demon said, twirling and playing with it as naturally as he breathed. "Now if you'll leave me to my devices, I'll leave you to yours. All things considered, that's a very generous deal, and I suggest you take it while I am still feeling hospitable."

"_Return that death scythe to me at once_," William hissed, fighting back the anger that wanted to break forth. Letting anger interfere was never good; going into a fight angry meant you'd already lost. "_Return it at once, and your punishment will be minimal."_

"Is that all you can say?" He smirked, head tilting easily to one side, knowing jibing him would only annoy him and keep him there. "You should leave. I believe I warned you once...and while I consider patience one of my virtues, I find that you have managed to deplete it completely."

William's eyes narrowed. Uncomfortable as he was, unarmed and on the defensive for once, he was determined not to let the demon see his unease.

"You have no business here. Your contract has ended. The one pathetic excuse you had is gone."

"Ah, yes. Free of that awful _collar_, as you called it..." His eyes narrowed and the falsely bright smile turned downright cruel. "It does feel so good to be able to do as I wish again. And feed as often as I desire."

Reflexively, William's finger twitched to extend the death scythe he did not currently hold. The demon caught the motion and laughed outright, condescendingly mocking him.

"Incomplete without your little hedge trimmer, are you? Tsk, tsk." The virulent glare seemed to glow more brightly. "How pathetic. You're not much of an opponent with nothing to fight with."

The reaper tried to speak, but before he could get so much as a word out, he found his jaw held tight in Sebastian's grip. Instead of his response, a startled choking noise escaped his throat. The demon let out a single, soft laugh.

"At least your little subordinate would have had the strength to fight me on his own."

Suddenly filled with rage, he slapped the demon's hand away and lunged forward, striking hard at whatever he could reach.

Laughing, the demon countered each blow with lazy expertise. Finally catching one of William's fists in his hands, he deftly twisted the reaper's wrist in just such a way to bring the man to his knees with a shout of pain.

"Now, can we have something of a more civilized conversation?" He asked, quiet amusement still coloring his voice. "You are without a weapon and thus vastly overpowered. It is against your better interest to continue in your attempt to fight me."

Gritting his teeth against the pain in his wrist, William growled a response.

"Go to hell," He grunted, the pain quickly washing away his usual civil, if backhanded, manner. "Back where you belong."

"Ah, but why, when there's a veritable buffet here on earth? One soul isn't enough to satisfy me after so long, and at this point I'll sacrifice taste for sustenance. The boy was quite delicious enough."

"_Release me-!_"

"I think not. It's only fair I treat you the way you treat me-that is, as unworthy scum to be eliminated."

He sighed inwardly, hoping it wouldn't come to that. It would spoil everything if he had to kill this one. All his years of subterfuge and web-weaving, torn apart by interfering hands. Why _hadn't_ it been the redhead that showed up? Perhaps it was better to wait and try again some other time.

"You think that wouldn't bring all the reapers in London to your trail?" William was hissing through gritted teeth. "Even you couldn't win against all of them..."

"I'm aware," He said with a sigh. "Will you act civilly if I let you up? It's infuriating to speak with someone who has to grit his teeth."

William only glared at him in silence, something the demon seemed to take as a positive response. He released him, but didn't yet give back the scythe.

"And why do you want me gone so badly?" He asked, twirling it again. William's eyes narrowed at such a question.

"Demons are the filth that steal what they cannot rightfully claim, and do so through such convoluted and dishonest means-"

"Dishonest? You know that isn't true. You know we can't overtly lie-we must work in subtlety and omission, if we do, and it's only that loophole that allows the more discerning among us to feed as we do-sparingly and to a highly selective taste. Else there'd be mass panic and riots, and _oh_..." He rubbed the bridge of his nose. "It'd be the Salem Witch Trials all over again...have they happened yet? I find we're more apt to explore _whens_ than your lot." He continued without waiting for a response. "Would you prefer that I be forced to walk this world, unmasked?"

"As you're doing _now_?" The reaper pointed out. The demon smiled again.

"Just taking a moment to be back in my own skin," He said. "You'd want that as well, if you had to put on a new one for ears at a time."

"A minor price to pay for what you charge of your victims," the reaper snarled. Any pretense of pleasantness fell out of the demon's expression and left it blank and cold.

"Do you expect me not to feed myself?" The demon's voice was soft and smooth as silk, and wrapped around him almost suffocatingly as it tried to pull him under Sebastian's spell. "It's only natural that I need to find sustenance."

Smooth as silk and heavy as velvet, and dangerously dripping in venom. The demon's voice surrounded and overwhelmed him as the creature continued to murmur so..._seductively_ in his ears. The reaper shuddered as his felt the heat of the demon's body press to his own, black-clawed hands splaying on his chest and exploring it.

"Have you ever starved...?" The voice returned, Sebastian's breath warm on his skin, his lips hot as they brushed the sensitive lobe of his ear. "Have you ever felt hunger snaking its way throughout your body...its tendrils worming their way under your skin, wracking you with almost constant pain...and just when you think you've suppressed it, it _twists_..." the hand that had slid to William's stomach clenched suddenly, the gleaming nails digging uncomfortably into his skin, the fist adding an uneasy pressure. The demon's voice was harsher as he spoke again.

"Yes, it spikes and throbs and does all it can to remind you of just how strong it can be...oh, yes...hunger is a terrible and powerful thing..." The biting, bitter cold to his voice softened, and he spoke almost contemplatively. "It can drive a lesser being to death...and a stronger one to madness."

His hand relaxed, but to William's dismay, he did not pull away. Rather, his lips seemed to press closer.

"You yourself have said that I have not acted upon this force, that would surely drive anyone to rash and violent actions...so you must forgive me for doing so now, when I finally can...finally free from the choking collar I wore for so long."

Finally, the reaper seemed to come to his senses and managed to pull away.

"You have no right to steal the souls of those-"

"And what gives you the right to observe and harvest them? We came long before your kind, you realize-angels, demons, and the demi-gods that harvest the souls of the dying were born in that order. You were not created to thwart our actions."

"We are to judge impartially-"

"We were supposed to work alongside each other, did you know that?"

That claim stopped William in his tracks, and visibly caught him off-guard. The demon grinned widely, darkly, and continued.

"The souls you condemn to hell. They were originally meant to be fed to demons, who invariably found the souls of sinners more appetizing than those of the saints. The pain and strife invariably brought by such grievous sins do make for the best and richest spices...the flavor of a soul steeped in them is simply sublime."

For a moment, as he said the last word, the demon's eyes flared to the glowing red, but faded as quickly as they had lit. William's gaze was obviously conflicted. It almost made sense...but how could the demon's words be true?

"If that were the case..." Why was his voice shaking so badly? "Why have things changed since then-?"

Sebastian gave a long-suffering sigh and placed a hand on his chest.

"It was, of course, the fault of a few greedy and impulsive beasts. Unhappy with the souls they were being given, they sought others, and began pestering the reapers for a wider variety...of course, this simply wouldn't do. Needless to say, they did not take well to this refusal, and began taking the souls of whomever they wished. This behavior was, as it always seems to be, exaggerated and applied to all demons-a generalization based off the foolish actions of very few. Thus, the reapers turned against the demons, and we have hence become foragers, forever fighting to survive with those who once helped us."

Again, it all made sense. It added up perfectly. The story was virtually flawless...but why had he never heard of these events before? It irritated him to no end.

"Are you wondering why you have no prior knowledge of these occurrences?" The demon asked, grinning again in a way that said he could all but read the reaper's mind. "Do you honestly think they would broadcast to the new generations that demons and reapers once worked alongside each other? No, no, if they wanted us to be your enemies, they would sweep all evidence of cooperation under the rug. There are a few who might be old enough to remember...as I am...a time before now." Easily prying it from its place in the wall, Sebastian threw William's scythe with a dark grin. "Go to the one that resides here, in London...as an Undertaker."


	5. Chapter Four

"_Hee hee hee…_come to visit me, Willy-my-boy?"

He stood uncomfortably, searching for the source of the grating, whingeing voice. Despite dealing regularly in death, he found it highly disconcerting to be surrounded by coffins and various jars containing everything from embalming fluid to what looked suspiciously like human organs.

"_Well…?_"

William jumped a mile and whirled to face the voice that had returned, directly in his ear.

"I came to ask you about something," He said, adjusting his glasses and trying-and failing miserably-to prevent blood from rising in his cheeks. The Undertaker's incessant giggling wasn't helping.

"No information comes without a price," He leered, leaning close. From the way his arms were moving, William guessed he was rubbing his hands together; but with the man's too-long sleeves, it was impossible to tell for sure.

"Price-?" He lost again against the flush deepening the red shade on his face. "I don't have anything-"

"Oh, no," the silver-haired, ex-reaper crooned. "I don't ask for petty money or pointless material things…" He was quivering as he giggled, fighting, it seemed, the desire to break into peals of laughter. "But just watching you…" His giggles were turning manic. "I think that might be payment enough...!"

He burst into raucous laughter, grating on William's ears and too loud in the small room. Just when he thought for sure that his head would burst, the laughter began to quiet and he found he could think again.

"Now, what was it that you wanted to know~?"

William ignored the line of spittle dripping from the corner of the other man's mouth and recounted that tale Sebastian had told him, skirting around where he'd heard it first.

"Oh…~" The grating quality of the Undertaker's voice was getting old fast, but William sat grinding his teeth and listening.

"Do you know of it?"

"Of course I do~...but _who_ told _you?_"

"That is unimportant," William stated, adjusting his glasses. "Please tell me what you know."

The Undertaker giggled to himself, resting his chin on the heel of his hand.

"The best-kept secret of the shinigami," he began. "If anyone nowadays heard we originally worked hand-in-hand with the demons…can you imagine the uproar?" He said it was gleeful relish, excited, it seemed, at the prospect. "But yes, each went out as a pair. A reaper and a demon, each a team. Only powerful demons-_intelligent_ demons-would have partnerships, understand."

"What was the point of such pairings? Seeing as they're unnecessary now…"

The Undertaker turned for a moment, picking up and contemplating the scythe William had leaned against the wall upon entering. The darker-haired man fought the impulse to snatch it from his hands.

"The scythes we carry…" He toyed with it easily, grinning all the while. "They aren't the most effective weapons, are they?"

"They're just fine as-"

"How difficult was it for you to _learn_ with it? It's unwieldy and tricky to direct appropriately, isn't it? You can reflexively now, but think back to when you first held it."

It was something he hadn't considered in quite a while, but it was true. Training with the scythe had been hell. Adjusting to the awkward weight of it when it was extended, compensating for its tendency to swing wildly in one direction or the other, learning the hard way that the trigger reacted to even the slightest amount of pressure...

"They aren't designed for combat, y'see, and to start with we never had anything to do with fighting."

"Then-"

"When lesser demons began attacking the shinigami who were out reaping, the help of more powerful demons was enlisted. For compensation, the souls of the sinners."

"It was for…protection?"

"That was indeed part of it~...the demon would fight and lesser creatures to protect the reaper. Their incentive was plenty to do their job well. A demon working with a reaper would have at _least_ a soul a week, usually more-and that is _quite_ luxurious for creatures who can go a decade or more without feeding."

William considered this for a moment turning it over in his mind. It was true that demons were much more aggressive and pugnacious, and that they struggled to fight even the lesser ones. But that all this was true still didn't seem quite within his grasp.

"Some pairs were tightly bonded," the silver-haired man continued idly. "It wasn't unheard of that the two would take each other as lovers."

"_What-?_"

Again, the ancient reaper burst into peals of laughter. William felt his face burn bright red, and sat uncomfortably waiting for the other to calm down again.

"Such a prude, aren't you?" He crowed, still giggling. "Oh, yes…they were said to be excellent lovers, and why not? They all dabble in lust, and the incubi and succubi deal in it…"

"That is-_filthy_ and _disgusting_-"

"Only because you've been conditioned to believe that. Some were more resilient to the treatment than others…I believe that redhead you work with had a weakness for the one that just completed his contract."

Of course it came back to Sebastian. In the end, all his troubles would revolve around that one creature. He blushed uncomfortably again as he thought of the demon's clawed hands playing over his chest, the soft, sultry voice in his ear.

"And you're thinking about the demon that told you all this," the Undertaker crooned. "Imagining that heat around you and how their lips would feel on yours…!"

William stood sharply and again adjusted his glasses.

"I would never disgrace myself in such a way," He spat, thinking of Grell.

_...I could never hurt him in such a way._

He straightened his shoulders and snatched his scythe away from the other man.

"If you have nothing else useful to say, I'll be leaving."

"You don't want to know why things fell apart?"

The voice was knowingly mocking. Torn, he hesitated, then finally looked back over his shoulder.

"Be quick about it."

"What were you told?"

"…That some were greedy and sought other souls. When they were denied, they tried to take them by force."

"What…'other souls'?"

He blinked in response. He hadn't considered it before.

"I would assume…the souls of the righteous…"

"Oh, demons have no taste for such traits…thinking of that redhead again, how does he view his life as a reaper?"

William's distrust of the man grew exponentially. As far as he knew, Grell had told no one but himself what he thought of his 'second life'.

"…A punishment. Something akin to limbo…unable to truly die and rest."

"And you're thinking that it can't be true, because you were always such a law-abiding and upright citizen. But he may have a point there. A punishment for the most heinous crimes committed...but repented upon."

"I don't follow."

"If demons are born of the utmost evil and angels of the most beautiful good, there are plenty in the middle. But there are a few who, at some point in their life, switch from one path to the other. Ones who visit both extremes…are given the immortality of the angels, and yet are forced to clean up after the dead, taking souls in the manner of demons."

_We came long before your kind, you realize-angels, demons, and the demi-gods that harvest the souls of the dying were born in that order._

"Then…"

"Then the soul of a reaper…would taste simply sublime to them, wouldn't it? The sinner, redeemed, or the angel, fallen?"

"…You don't mean…"

"At the time it was written off as an accident. A demon's predatory nature carries into everything they do, including…moments of passion."

"No…"

"The reaction wouldn't have been nearly as drastic if it had been mortal souls. Ties cut with the particular demon or demons…but to drive _such_ a wedge between reapers and demons…"

"Then-"

"The offending demon was executed, which sent all of them into uproar. Even if that hadn't been the sentence, things would have crumbled-no trust between partners, each thinking the other either couldn't control their instincts or would seek misplaced revenge."

"…And….the reaper?"

The Undertaker's tone became oddly dismissive.

"Comatose for a short time. The soul was returned, and he retired."

"Returned-?"

" A soul knows its proper host…" His voice had dropped to an eerie kind of murmur. "And longs to return to it. It's a painful process, but it's possible to achieve, provided the body hasn't died…making that reaper lucky, indeed."

"How is it done…?"

"The demon and reaper alike must be cut with a scythe-deeply, too. The record, or soul, will flow from the demon to its rightful host, and must be cut from the demon."

William tried to understand the logic behind it, but couldn't.

"But how?"

"The soul a demon devours replaces the one it once had until it's digested. While it doesn't change their nature or what they are, it fills them in a deeper way than just sating their hunger."

He thought again of what the demon had said about hunger. Suddenly, everything did make sense, and the reality hit him with an unpleasant bump.

"Have I answered all your questions, Willy-my-boy?"

"_Don't call me that_."

"Well, I'll take that to mean I have…" he laughed again and lifted a hand in wave. "Don't get in too far over your head…"

With this less-than-encouraging parting message, he left the Undertaker's shop, thinking for the first time about the deep scars on the man's throat and face.

}~X~X~X~X~{

"There you are...!"

"Hn-?"

William was surprised as he walked into his room to find Grell waiting. The redhead greeted him with an embrace and a warm kiss, and at his touch William felt the stress of the day melt out of him.

"You're later than usual," Grell teased, smiling. "I've been waiting..."

"I'm sorry..." He laughed softly, loosening his tie as he stepped further into the room. "Had a little more on my plate than usual."

"Well, you're here now." Grell tugged him forward by his tie, eventually causing both of them to tumble onto the neatly made bed. "And that's fine with me."

The slim, nimble hands made quick work of the tie and began in short order on his buttons. As he felt soft lips press to his collarbone, thoughts of anything else fled his mind, and he gratefully gave himself over to the sensation, melting into the sweet distraction of his lover's kiss.


	6. Chapter Five

Holy sheet long chapter. It moves kinda quick and I apologize. I also apologize for not posting anything in like...a month. Sorry. Midterms/oh hey i got a job/had to drill another creativity well, the last one ran dry. But there's a little bit of boy lovin' in here, if it makes you feel better! We're still in PG-13 territory (it doesn't move _that_ fast), but hey, accelerated plots with luvins are better than a really long chapter with no plot significance whatsoever!

TL;DR: boys kissing in here, long chapter to make up for long absence. enjoy.

* * *

><p>"<em>You lied<em>."

Unfazed by the glare of fury or the scythe brandished at him, the demon raised an eyebrow and easily met William's eye. The reaper had expected to find him lingering near one of his clients, and had been stewing quietly ever since starting the night's reaping. Finally confronted by the demon, he was glad to release his frustration.

"What did I lie about?"

"You told me that the demons-"

"Went after different souls...and that they did."

"Oh, was it just _convenient _to omit which souls, exactly?"

Sebastian shifted, moving closer with liquid grace, using two fingers to shift the scythe away.

"I anticipated that you would learn that on your own. Considering your vehement dislike of all things 'evil,' it seemed more appropriate that you hear it from a source other than myself." Now directly in front of William, Sebastian caressed his jaw with a single, clawed finger. "I do not lie. Do not make me say that again."

There was an underlying threat in the demon's voice that undermined the beautiful smile on his face. William stepped back, regarding him harshly.

"Omission doesn't count as a lie, then."

"Did I ever speak falsely? Did I tell you that it wasn't the soul of a reaper they wanted?" The demon's voice was quickly becoming short and irritated. "An outright lie is very different than a subtle deception. Just because _you_ filled in a blank incorrectly does not mean I spoke false."

William gritted his teeth against the mocking tone in the demon's voice.

"You deliberately misled me-"

"Of course," Sebastian interrupted. "Did you think I would change my nature? And did you _honestly_ think that I would tell you something like that outright?"

Taking another step back, William glared at the demon. Infuriatingly enough, Sebastian was still smiling, in the indulgent way a mother smiles at a slow child.

"Well?"

"Is that what you want, then?" William returned, refusing to admit the demon was right.

"You soul? Did I _say_ I wanted it?"

"What you _don't_ say seems to hold more weight than what you _do_," William said dryly. Sebastian's expression fell blank for a moment, but then the unsettling smile returned.

"I've told you what I want from you. Why would I want _your_ soul, when I can get so many more by working with you?"

"Why would it have happened that first time?"

Sebastian sighed, growing mildly frustrated again.

"I don't know. In my opinion, the reapers themselves weren't the actual target. But I cannot say."

William's expression was cold and harsh.

"The reapers weren't the target."

"No. I believe that those who had the _potential_ to become reapers were the ones they sought. Not those who were already recruited."

"Semantics then," He interjected coldly.

"Not at all."

Growing tired of the demon's talk, William rubbed the bridge of his nose and debated leaving. Cursing his curiosity, he looked up at the demon again.

"Explain..."

"There are three options when reaping. Heaven, Hell, or recruitment. Yes?"

"Yes."

"Before the choice is made, the person is merely a human. A mortal."

"...And?"

"It frustrated the demons that they would watch the record of a sinner and be denied a meal. Attempting to be understanding, they didn't ask for every soul that made a candidate-only one in ten or so."

William scoffed.

"Did they expect to be indulged in such an asinine matter? We need all the employees we can get."

"They expected, I'm sure, to at least be taken seriously. Would you like it if someone describe to you the most delicious feast you could have ever imagined, and then told you they were keeping it for themselves?"

"You keep asking these ridiculous questions-"

Sebastian was suddenly inches from him, glaring with flat, cold fury.

"_You have for your entire existence been told to believe one thing about demons, and you have accepted it unquestioningly. I ask you these questions so that you may _finally_ see the injustice that has been paraded as righteous superiority for far too long._"

As he made to step away, Sebastian caught William's chin in a clawed hand and forced him to meet his gaze.

"_Do not. Assume. That you are always in the right._"

William struggled to get away, which only prompted a tighter grip on his jaw. Blood welled where the demon's claws dug into his skin.

"What do you want me to say-?" He spat, frustrated and angered by Sebastian's attitude and actions.

"Do you see how grating it is now? How demeaning and infuriating it is to be treated this way?" The blank fury turned to a mocking, cruel smirk. "I don't have a collar anymore, William. There's nothing stopping me from snapping your neck like a twig. I suggest you drop that guise of aloof superiority you cling to so desperately. You are vastly outmatched."

"Let go-!"

"We've had this conversation before. That is why I am acting so harshly now. Respect me, and I will treat you the same way. We are _not_ contracted, you are _not_ above me, and I am _not_ your slave. Do you understand?"

"Yes..." William grudgingly answered. The demon's grip tightened again.

"Yes _what_."

"We're equals-!"

After a long moment, Sebastian sighed and released him.

"Close enough."

William wiped at the warm trickles of blood on his cheeks, cursing quietly. The demon watched with burning eyes until the reaper looked back at him.

"_What._"

"You have no advanced healing abilities?"

Gritting his teeth, William replied.

"Not against wounds inflicted by your kind."

"Then allow me."

The grin the demon wore-that seemed to always be in place and change by mere degrees-unsettled him more than ever before.

"It's fine."

"If you agree to this partnership, William, we're going to have to trust each other. Why not start now?"

Warily, he eyed the demon. Feeling a rivulet of blood sliding down his jaw, he finally responded.

"Fine. Be quick about it."

Sebastian reached out and wiped away the trickle of blood, his eyes laughing as he licked his finger clean. William's stomach heaved, and he expected the demon to laugh, but Sebastian seemed quite distracted by something. The low growl that came from deep in his throat and the look in his eyes as they opened again, flaring with crimson light, made William take a step back.

"...Forgive me..." the demon murmured quietly. "I thought it would be better to sample the taste first...to prevent any...mishaps..."

He had stopped growling, but the look of his eyes hadn't changed, and William fought to keep still as he stepped closer again.

"Why was that even-?"

He found himself unable to finish his sentence as Sebastian's hand wrapped around the back of his neck and the demon's head dipped; William shuddered in revulsion as he felt the his hot tongue on his cheek, gliding over the pinhole wounds and leaving a wet streak of saliva and a lingering warmth. Sebastian let out a low moan, and sucked ever so briefly on the single wound on William's other cheek, drawing just a bit more blood before lapping it away. The reaper tensed as Sebastian's lips grazed his neck for just a moment, longing to bite and sample the man's taste in a more satisfying way. In the longest moment of his life, the demon lingered, before finally pulling away, visibly fighting his desire to feed.

"Wh...What the hell was that-?"

"Forgive me..." Sebastian still seemed to be composing himself. "Didn't I just tell you that reapers would be the most satisfying...?"

Wiping his cheeks, William glared at the demon.

"_Why was that necessary._"

"You wanted your wounds healed...you can't argue that it wasn't quick and effective."

"_And disgustingly vulgar and inappropriate!_"

"Tell me, William-in your eyes, what _isn't_ 'disgustingly inappropriate and vulgar'?"

Grumbling under his breath, William fussed with his binder for want of something to do with his hands.

"More than you'd expect..."

The demon did laugh this time, hearing the mumbled, half-audible words with inhuman clarity.

"Does little William enjoy some things that would lean more toward my persuasions...?" He mocked with a wide grin. "Perhaps we'll get along well, after all..."

"_I never agreed to partner up with you._"

"I know, I know..." Sebastian sighed dismissively. "But it's only a matter of time."

_And time is all we have_...

Unaware of Sebastian's thought, William tried to calculate the look in his eyes.

"...Why are you smiling like that."

"The way I always do?"

Again gritting his teeth against his frustration, the reaper elected to change the subject.

"You expect me to believe the story of a bloodthirsty, manipulative demon and the ramblings of a senile ancient? I don't care how powerful he was in his prime, the man's clearly addled and a _demon_ isn't the most trustworthy of sources."

"Nonetheless, yes, I do expect you to believe me," Sebastian answered easily, inspecting his fingernails.

"You are an absolutely moronic-"

"I wouldn't need to skulk about and take the souls that are precious to you," he countered, cutting William off. "Provided that you mark their condemnation, it is perfectly viable that they go to a being of Hell."

"When a soul is reaped, it can be documented-when it is _stolen_-"

Growing impatient, the demon let out a half-sigh, half-growl.

"The system you cling to so desperately was set up, as I've told you before, to accommodate such actions. It was designed for the two of us to help each other."

"What do _I_ get out of this?" William snapped, beginning to lose his perfect composure. "You get exactly what you want-and _I_?"

"Do not forget that you were made to distinguish for us which souls were proper for us to eat. We are, in a way, each other's pets-the reaper that feeds the demon, the demon that cleans up after the reaper."

"That doesn't answer my question."

"Then perhaps rescuing-or preserving, rather-the souls that deserve a fairer fate is what you should consider your purpose or reward."

William sighed, still regarding the demon coldly. Sebastian only grinned.

"Shall we test it? If I'm not mistaken, this soul is one to be condemned."

William hesitated for a moment. Yes, the demon was right, but if he was bluffing about the judgment...

"Will one soul be your undoing? It would be unpleasant, yes...but then again, I could easily go and take every other soul on your list."

"You couldn't."

Grinning all the while, Sebastian rattled off a list of names and watched the reaper pale with every one.

"Shall we agree on this one, now?"

He didn't wait for William to respond and knelt over the prone body, lifting it and setting to retrieving his prize.

The irritation and revulsion William had expected to feel did not come, or did come nearly as strongly as he thought it would. Rather, it was a strange curiosity that crept through him as he watched the other demon capture the prone figure's mouth with his own. Could this work? Was this creature truly in the right about it all?

Watching Sebastian pulled forth a memory from his visit to the Undertaker; he had commented that some partner had gone so far as to-

_No. No, no, no, think about Grell, think about work, think about anything but-_

the sensation of the demon pressed close, his hands roaming over William's chest and his voice in his ear; his assertive nature, the languid, sensual way he did _everything_; even the brush of his lips, the heat and moistness of the demon's breath on his skin. He suppressed a revolted shudder when his mind wandered briefly to how a demon's kiss felt.

_No! Not when you've already got enough on your plate, and not now that you've finally smoothed things over with Grell!_

He banished the vulgar thoughts as best he could, and distracted himself with the page in his binder that was devoted to the man the demon knelt over. To his surprise, the page didn't go blank, as a stolen soul's normally would. Nothing at all changed.

He could only stare, dumbfounded. He only came back to awareness as the demon's hand closed on his own and guided it to stamp the judgment 'complete'.

"...How...?"

Sebastian grinned.

"This is how it was intended," he says. "I do not lie." He tilted his head to one side, the grin twisting into an expression William couldn't quite read. "...Perhaps unrelated...but there was something you wanted to ask me."

"No," William said too quickly. The demon's peculiar expression took on a mocking touch.

"No?" Slowly, almost predatorily, the demon came closer. "I've told you that I do not lie. I would appreciate you returning the favor."

"I-"

"I will gladly give you what you want," He continued. "But only if you will ask."

He stood very close to the reaper, not uncomfortably so, but at an intimate distance. Torn, William fidgeted as he tried to make up his mind.

"Will you ask for what you want...?" The demon purred, his eyes half-lidded and dark. William fought not to lose himself entirely in them.

"Do I have to take it from you, William? Or will you admit to yourself that you want it?"

Sebastian took a slow step closer. Though dark, his eyes were still burning, the color in his irises writhing with a diabolical light.

"I-I..."

"You...?"

The demon stepped even closer, and finally, William deciphered the odd emotion in his expression. Desire.

"I want..."

The reaper's voice faltered as the demon took his chin in his hand.

"Go on," he breathed, his eyes slipping closed as he rested his forehead against William's. The longer strands of his hair tickled the reaper's cheeks and brought a deep red blush to them. William couldn't find his voice as Sebastian's hand slipped gently to cup his neck. Even the demon's breath was unusually warm and faintly moist as it flowed over the reaper's lips, causing them to part with a small, involuntary noise. The red eyes opened and met the green as the demon laughed softly, especially after noticing the guilty way William's eyes rose quickly from his mouth.

"Go ahead," He murmured, ensuring that his lips passed within a hair's breadth of the other man's, enough for an electric tingle to pass between them, but still without contact. It was up to him to either admit it or make the first move. William's cheeks darkened further and his eyes fought to settle between the red eyes and pale mouth. They were clouding over with reluctant longing, as he still tried to fight what his body so desperately wanted. Sheer willpower stopped Sebastian from grinding his teeth in his impatience; instead, he ran a hand through William's hair.

"...Very well, then," He said quietly, sighing. "I must have misunderstood."

He drew back to leave, but had barely moved when a hand on the back of his head pulled him forward and sent his lips crashing into William's. For the briefest of moments, the reaper enjoyed the sensation-then seemed to realize what he had done and tried to pull away.

Hardly surprised by the sudden and desperate action, it had taken Sebastian no time at all to sink his hands into William's soft, dark hair, and as he struggled to withdraw, refused to let him move. Struggle turned briefly to panic, but when Sebastian pressed against him and bit down gently on his lower lip, he seemed to melt entirely. His hands, shoving against the demon's shoulders, relaxed and hesitantly slipped back into the thick, silken locks of hair. The kiss was sublime. He never wanted it to end. The demon's burning lips on his, the skilled hands roaming over his body. Sebastian drove him backward, shoving him roughly up against the wall of the alley, and the cold, wet stone, unyielding, only made the demon's hot and welcoming form seem more favorable. Closer he pressed, their bodies flush on each other's, and with a jolt in the pit of his stomach, William felt the aching hardness of the demon on his thigh. The pit in his stomach seemed to heat and spread as his own body reacted to the demon's undeniable lust.

Sebastian was utterly amused. He had been so quick to give in, in the end, and he doubted the reaper was aware of the way his hands had tightened in his hair, or the way he pressed their hips harder together. He was glad to draw attention to it, crudely grabbing his backside and pulling him forward. William broke the kiss as he threw his head back with a ragged gasp, and Sebastian took up nipping and sucking on the tender, pale skin of his exposed throat. He drew a low moan from the reaper, who finally seemed to regain control of his nerveless body. Breathing heavily and raggedly, he pressed against Sebastian with surprising strength, but it wasn't escape he sought. They scuffled momentarily, the demon reluctant to let William take control so soon. After a short time grappling, biting and scratching almost too hard to be considered play, Sebastian found himself pinned to the wall opposite the one they had just been on.

"My, my, William...what on earth could make you want something like _me_ so much?"

The amusement in the demon's voice was cool and mocking. It seemed to snap something in William's mind back into place. About to pull Sebastian back into the heated kiss, he suddenly froze and then leapt back as if stung. His gaze was harsh and accusing.

"...Don't try to play games with me, demon," He spat. Sebastian only smiled, stepping closer again.

"You know a demon's charms have only minimal effects on reapers," He returned calmly. "Even one more powerful than myself couldn't draw that out of you if you _truly_ didn't want it..." He laughed darkly. "You must forgive me, though. Odd though it may seem, most of us find feeding to be particularly arousing...and while we may not be able to play mind games with you, pheromones are an entirely different story."

He only half-heard what the demon said. In the back of his mind, he knew it was true. The ability to recognize a demon's charms for what they were broke most of their power

What would Grell think?

Dread shot through him, ice-cold and all-encompassing. Grell. How could he have forgotten about Grell-?

_Pheromones, _he realized, the second half of the demon's speech finally unscrambling in his brain. _Overpowering pheromones...it _wasn't_ my choice..._

Sebastian's eyes were cold and detached as they took in the sudden change in the reaper. He had gone rigid and his thoughts were obviously elsewhere. The demon leaned forward, whispering softly in William's ear.

"...Distracted?"

The reaper leapt back again, glaring at the demon. He had let down his guard, underestimating how cunning and crafty Sebastian was. He vowed to never make that mistake again.

"Oh dear...what now, William? Have you suddenly realized that you have more work to do?"

More work to do. There was _always_ more work to do. But if he could cut that amount of work...if using the demon would help him get back on top of things...he thought of the mountain of paperwork in his office. Clocking out on time without his work done was taking a toll, and in his efforts to mend things with Grell he'd let his work slide...

But if the demon took the tainted souls, it reduced the work from a full file to a single signature...he could_ easily_ finish the backlog then, and find an equilibrium when he had a clean slate...

"Fine," He said brusquely, focusing on the red-eyed being again. "You were right; this method is just as effective as the other, and more efficient."

"Well, after hearing it from two sources and witnessing it firsthand, I'd hope you'd realize that..." The demon's grin and his voice were, as always, subtle and mocking. "Is that the only conclusion you've come to? That I was telling the truth?"

His patience for Sebastian wearing thin, William adjusted his glasses and narrowed his glare.

"...For the time being, I do need help. I accept your proposal of partnership."

"Oh, there are so many implications of that claim, given very recent events..." The demon mused, grinning to himself.

"_Don't mock me, you disgusting creature-_"

Before he could finish his sentence, he found himself pinned to the wall again, the demon's eyes glowing fiercely as they bore into his own.

"_Disgusting...?_" He hissed. "_You didn't seem to think that mere moments ago..._"

Despite the usual indication of anger, William once again found the burning crimson gaze alluring instead of intimidating. Any words he tried to form fled his lips, and he couldn't muster the energy or desire to push Sebastian away.

"_I have treated you civilly and even_ kindly_ throughout our interactions. As I said earlier, if you seek a partnership, I will not tolerate the way you currently deign to speak to me_."

As words failed him again, William nodded, his gaze never parting from the scarlet luster of the demon's eyes. The anger faded slowly from Sebastian's face, replaced by a haughty, dismissive expression.

"You may name me, then, if you wish."

"What-? I'm not-"

The demon snorted in derisive laughter.

"As if I would contract with the likes of you. The partnership is, however, somewhat binding if acted on appropriately, and as I have just completed a contract, the name 'Sebastian' means nothing to me any longer."

Flustered momentarily, William blinked.

"Keep it as a name...no sense in complicating things..."

"Very well, then. Sebastian, I shall remain."

The reaper nodded uncertainly, wary of the creature leaning so predatorily above him.

"Is there anything else to be done?"

"Not unless you wish there to be. I shall find you each night as you manifest here and leave you when the reaping is done."

William noticed now the subtle shift in Sebastian's posture, from the menacing hunch to a more relaxed lean, almost flirtatious if not for his expression.

"And if I'm joined by others?"

"Then I will hang back and mask myself."

"...Do you intend on beginning tonight?"

For once the demon's smile didn't seem to mock him, and was instead genuinely amused.

"I think I'll give you the night to let your head clear," he said. "Beginning tomorrow, I will accompany you."

William felt the heat rise in his cheeks as blood flooded them.

"_That will never be spoken of again."_

"Of course not..." Sebastian's vice was light and casual. "I will not mention it, unless for some reason you do."

Content that he would never have reason to mention the shameful event, William nodded.

"May I request one thing of you?" He asked as the demon turned away.

"That depends."

"At least make yourself presentable during the time we will be working together."

With a sigh, the demon turned back, his appearance shifting to mimic William's clothing and his demonic features fading back to human standards. From the breast pocket of his jacket, he pulled a pair of glasses and slipped them into place.

"Does this suit you."

"Those look like training glasses."

"All for the better, then," the demon said dismissively. "And excuse for any who glimpse me not to know who I am."

Without another word, he turned and vanished, leaving William to the empty night and the rest of his work.


	7. Chapter Six

Pbbbbbbbbt apparently I'm only doing monthly updates for this one? Admittedly I only really nailed the plot down for this chapter. Even though it doesn't show.

Anyway, sorry for the infrequency, I'm trying to work on that. Here's chapter six!

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><p>He roused himself as night began to fall. The chambermaid turning down the bed let out a yelp as he stood; she had hardly noticed him sitting in the chair in the corner, unnaturally still as he wiled the day away in thought. Ignoring her entirely, he left the room he had charmed his way into obtaining and forced his expression to remain neutral as he entered the lobby of the hotel. All the frivolous finery and pretentious displays of wealth disgusted him, and he quelled the brief flare of loathing that wanted to manifest as a sneer. Humans were such disgusting creatures. He crossed the lobby at a brisk walk, favoring even the dank London smog over the reek of sweat, piss, and other such bodily fluids that never was truly washed from any human establishment.<p>

Ah, well. His newest plaything was at least more perceptive than the usual lot, and had senses that were closer in sharpness to his. He would say that much for the reaper; he was scrupulously adamant about his hygiene.

The freedom of the streets at last. Turning down the first alley he encountered, Sebastian leapt lightly to the roof of the building, pausing only long enough to investigate the soft rustle of something moving in the refuse. Smiling gently at what turned out to be a kitten, he tenderly stroked the soft fur behind its ears and cradled it in his hands.

He reflected for a moment on how easy it had been to seduce William. It seemed almost impossible that things would work out so well, especially without Grell; but things had rolled smoothly onward after that first hiccup.

He shrugged to himself, still stroking the kitten as he crossed to the edge of the roof, waiting. It wouldn't be long now, and if things went well tonight, he could report to his benefactor.

Ah, there it was; that peculiar mild discomfort as reality warped and broke to permit the reapers. It made the hair on the nape of his neck stand up, and he gazed about for the newcomers.

_What's this...?_

His eyes narrowed as he watched the blonde bound off immediately, but Grell lingered with William. They conversed for a moment, lingering comfortably.

_Oh, this won't do_...

William stepped back, drawing Grell with him by his jacket. They might have been hidden by shadows to the eye of a human, but the alley might as well have been standing in the noonday sun to the demon's gaze.

Grell was looking vaguely confused, but devious, and he wrapped his arms around William's neck as the darker-haired man pressed a kiss to the painted lips.

_No, this won't do at _all...

Sebastian's eyes burned with crimson light as he watched. If Grell had a reason to fawn over William and not get batted away as usual, things could go seriously wrong. It all depended on remaining undetected until the very last moment, and if their relationship became or was already intimate, it would throw a decidedly more troublesome wrench in the works.

_I knew it was too easy. There had to be something making it more difficult._

The kitten, no longer getting pet as Sebastian focused elsewhere, mewed and nuzzled his hand. Calming slightly, he began to stroke it again, and it began to purr complacently.

"Just to separate them, then. It won't be hard. But not yet. We can give them some time, can't we?"

The kitten, of course, didn't respond, save to bite the cuff of his sleeve.

* * *

><p>William watched Grell go with a twinge of guilt. He hadn't been able to bring himself to explain what had happened the night before, for any number of reasons, not the least among them the fact that it was <em>Sebastian.<em> It added insult to injury, in a way; not only had he let himself be touched by a demon, but it was the very one Grell had sought to soothe his own anxieties. If the redhead had picked up on his inner conflict, he hadn't said anything; but some part of William insisted Grell was still expecting odd and somewhat distant behavior.

He sighed, adjusting his glasses and suddenly becoming acutely aware of a set of eyes watching him. It didn't take a moment of thought to piece together who it could have been, and in no time at all, he had joined the demon on the rooftop.

"...Why are you holding that."

"I believe it's a she," The demon answered, depositing the kitten on his shoulder, where it proceeded to play with his hair. "And I happen to like cats. Is that against some obscure rule?"

William hated the way he felt his cheeks burn as the demon smiled. How was it that a simple upturn of the lips could bring such a tide of memory and emotion rolling forth?

"...It is not. But it is hughly unprofessional to-"

"Lucky for me, I have no concerns with being professional. I'm not a reaper, remember?"

This time, his lips parted over his grin, and William could see the tiny fangs in the demon's mouth. Setting his jaw, he adjusted the positioning of his glasses again.

"How could I forget."

"Ah, at least you're learning. Yesterday you would have followed that up with some kind of insult."

"I'm not sure if it was the speech, the injuries, or your _tongue_ that effectively cemented that lesson."

He was sure the demon intentionally licked his lips before speaking, the tip of his pink tongue peeking out for just a fraction of a second in an oddly obscene way.

"May I ask which application of my tongue you were speaking of?"

"_I thought we agreed that we were never speaking of that again._"

The demon laughed quietly, prying the kitten from his shoulder and setting it gently down.

"If we stay to talk much longer, you won't get your work done on time," he ribbed, adjusting his own glasses. William had almost forgotten the demon was wearing them; he was accustomed to them being the rule, rather than the exception. Glancing up, he regretted making eye contact with the demon the moment it happened, and forced himself to look away from the languidly sensual gaze Sebastian was giving him over the tops of the lenses.

"Would you stop looking at me like that?"

"Like what?"

The question was too frank to be a trap. He seemed honestly unaware of the quality of his gaze.

"Like I'm your next meal," He spat, and the demon blinked.

"...Forgive me. I'm surrounded by mortals all day, it becomes something of a reflex. I'm sorry if my 'neutral' expression leans toward 'predatory'."

And yet, once again, his grin only grew wider and more salacious. William turned away from him, opening his binder.

"We'd best get to work."

"Indeed."

"Oh..." Gritting his teeth, William pulled something off his belt and held it out to Sebastian. "If you're going to pretend to be a trainee, you might as well have this."

Sebastian took the parcel and hooked it onto his own belt, looking amused.

"What on earth, may I ask, _is_ it?"

"A training scythe."

"Oh?"

Pulling the handle from what could only be called the holster, Sebastian sighed when he saw that it connected only to a wooden blade. William scoffed.

"As if I would actually let you have one. There would be no way to return it without sending the entire compound into uproar. It's merely for show. No intern would be without one."

Replacing the dummy scythe, Sebastian laughed quietly to himself.

"Then I must have left a mark on your scythe, and Grell's as well..." he mused quietly, following William as he took off.

"The scythes of Mr. Sutcliff and myself were not exposed to...your particular type of essence long enough for it to be completely contaminated. Being our personal scythes, as well, it is less likely someone else would handle it to notice."

"Oh, so it doesn't _emanate_ off of it?" Sebastian mocked.

"No." William's response was curt, as always. "But it becomes more than apparent once you handle the afflicted object."

He stopped suddenly, staring intently at a woman walking down the street. Sebastian studied her as well, with disinterest.

"The first?"

"Yes. She'll return home soon. She's ill."

"I can smell it on her from here," he grumbled, wishing he hadn't put the kitten down. Their fur always smelled clean and sweet.

"You can smell disease?"

"In advanced stages, yes."

"Interesting. Ah..."

Without any further warning, he took off, easily negotiating his way around the rooftops. Sebastian followed silently, never far behind the reaper, who eventually stopped outside a residence. Shortly after, the woman in question entered.

"How long is this going to take?"

William didn't take his gaze from the woman as she went about settling in after her day.

"Aren't you curious about the state of her soul?"

"Much like her illness, her devout Christian attitude radiates from her."

William's eyes cut away from the woman for a split second, just as she went into a coughing fit. How could the demon sense so many things he couldn't?

"..._What_?"

Sebastian grinned.

"How do you think we discern whom to contract with? We're...intuitive about people's natures. The most fun to play with are those that think themselves devout, but whose faith is easily broken..."

William turned an eye back to the woman, who had collapsed into a chair and was still coughing.

"Why is that?"

"It's true that to some extent, truly holy energy repels us. So the person in question holds out a rosary, mumbling prayers that they can't quite remember, watch the power begin to manifest...and then flicker and die as they lose the faith they were so sure they had." He snickered, looking back on apparently fond memories. "It's usually at that point that they either flee or give up entirely and fall to their knees. Either way, they're easy targets."

The reaper suppressed a shudder at how easily the demon spoke of such things, and the way his eyes always lit when he did. Inside the house, the woman was clutching her chest and fighting for breath that wouldn't come.

"Oh, come on, man. Put her out of her misery. Even I'm not that cruel."

"You're just saying that because she's of no use to you."

"Not at all. I won't say that I haven't killed thousands, but it's a selective handful that have taken on my seal and let me...play with them."

"You're disgusting."

"I'm a predator."

"You're a _leech_."

Sebastian disappeared from beside him, and William suddenly felt a hand stroking his neck. The demon's voice was soft but clear as he spoke.

"Do I need to remind you again about how I will be treated?"

The hand gripped William's shoulder, the thumb beginning to exert pressure on his spine.

"No."

The pressure lifted, but the presence of the demon behind him didn't leave.

"Good..." Sebastian murmured, pressing a kiss to the hollow just behind William's jaw. Before he had time to react, the demon extended his arm, pointing at the dying woman.

"I believe it's time."

Flustered, though he would never admit it, William stepped away and tried to gather his scattered thoughts, thrown to the corners of his mind at the whirlwind of confusion, panic, and desire brought on by the demon's action. He adjusted his glasses, the closest he would ever come to showing discomfort, before setting to his work.

The demon grinned all the while as he watched, delighting in the progress he was making.


	8. Chapter Seven

Aaaaaaagh I feel so bad I haven't posted anything in months aaaagh this story isn't dead I promise William's just being a little bitch and Sebastian's being a diva and they won't cooperate with me ;^; and now this little chapter-let is really short and probably isn't very good I'm sorry...!

I don't even have an excuse, I'm just an awful person that can't seem to get her shit together OTL

Anyway...please enjoy the snippet I offer here, I hope there's more to come soon... (sorry again!)

~Cassie

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><p>"...Did you mean it when you said you liked my hair shorter...?"<p>

The questioned baffled him. William ran a hand through his hair and tried not to sigh, as exasperated as he was.

"What-?"

Staring into the mirror, Grell was toying with a shorter lock of his hair, his expression pensive.

"A few weeks ago, you said you preferred it short...I was just thinking about that..."

William's mind easily conjured up the image of the reaper when they were younger, his appearance only slightly different-he actually wore black back then, and his glasses were the typical pair for interns, and his hair as well was trimmed similarly to his own.

Right behind that image, summoned too easily for comfort and eerily similar, was that of the demon. He shook his head to clear the image from it and crossed to Grell, staring at the other man's reflection.

"No. Don't cut it." He touched Grell's shoulder, then bent to kiss his neck. "Please."

Grell turned as much as he could with William's head resting on his shoulder, concerned at the unusual note of-was it desperation?-in the man's voice.

"Are you all right...?"

"I'm fine. I promise." His hands slowly made their way from Grell's shoulders to wrap around his chest.

"I like your hair long. Don't cut it."

"I won't..."

It killed him to lie. Two souls had gone to the demon today, and it had done nothing to help William's resolve to resist him. But so much was riding on Grell's trust, and cruel as it was...the best way to keep it was to break it, it seemed. The logic of 'what he doesn't know won't hurt him' made more sense now than ever.

"William, you've been acting...odd...lately..."

"I'm sorry. I've been trying to balance work, and time with you, and-I'm exhausted."

"Come here." The redhead stood, gently tugging William across to the bed. "You work yourself too hard..."

"What am I supposed to do? I'm the only superior in our division, the understaffing problem means I have to do fieldwork on top my normal duties-it's just a nightmare."

"You worry too much about it."

"Grell, I _wish_ I didn't have to worry as much." He sighed heavily, not fighting as Grell removed his jacket and began on his tie.

"...I'm glad you've been making time for me," he said quietly, carefully studying his hands as he undid the first few button on William's shirt.

"I'm glad to." He tried to smile. "This is infinitely favorable to paperwork."

He watched pink kiss the smaller man's cheeks as he smiled, coaxing him to sit.

"Lay back...close your eyes and relax," he said softly, undoing to the rest of William's buttons.

He gladly did as told, sighing deeply and allowing the barest hint of a smile to turn up the corners of his mouth. It was a wonderful way to end a stressful day, he thought; his lover's hands dancing lightly over his skin and slowly undressing him for bed. He felt the tension leave him a little at a time with each tender, feather-light touch.

Drifting to sleep as Grell began to knead aching muscles, now and then dipping his head to kiss William's neck, he realized, unconcerned through sleep's hazy veil, that they were the demon's hands and lips beckoning him into darker desires he couldn't fathom while awake.


	9. Chapter Eight

...Wow. So. I've let this stagnate for nearly a year.

I apologize profusely.

I'm trying to get things going again. Sorry if this chapter isn't on par with the others, I'm trying to get back into the groove of this story. I want to write it. There's so much awesome in my head, and I can only hope it will translate.

That being said, I hope you enjoy.

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><p>"It's been a few weeks now, hasn't it?"<p>

"That is has."

"And how have things been progressing?"

"Better than expected-though, as I'm sure you know, the target has changed."

"Yes, Sutcliff did not show up as planned. I noticed. Odd that Spears did, though...why choose to attempt continuing with him?"

"I assumed that it would be easier and more practical than trying later to lure Sutcliff. If Spears was already looking for me, he would of course notice if Sutcliff continued acting as he did before-that is to say, blatantly pursuing the forbidden. At least we know _he_ will do everything he can to keep it hidden that he even interacts with a demon, let alone allows one to work beside him."

"Very true, very true..." The heavily scarred man tapped a finger on his desk before tracing it around the rim of his glass. It stood nearly empty, having held a deep red wine. "Are you sure he will work out, though?"

"I've told you already. He is far more susceptible to these things than he knows or suspects. It makes him the perfect target, really. He'll deny it until the end of the earth-even as begins losing his ability to think, to remember...he will always tell himself he is in control and he can continue. His pride will be his fall."

The black-nailed hand picked up the glass and he drained it. A drop of the wine leaking from the corner of his lips as he drank and the demon watched, waiting for a reaction to his report.

"...Continue, then. If you think things are going well, go on."

"Is there a time you would like things completed by?"

"No. Best not to push this one. It will take longer now, because he will be more resistant than Sutcliff. But we have been patient this long, and we have nothing but time."

The demon grinned.

"Exactly what I had thought."

The other man licked the drop of wine away and wiped his mouth, gently setting the glass down, his nails clinking lightly on the delicate material.

"And what do you intend to do about their relationship?"

"...Ah. You are aware of that."

"Of course I am."

Sebastian was quiet for a moment, choosing his words carefully.

"I don't intend on interfering with it now. My hold on Spears is not strong enough to sustain a suggestion against it. Over time, my influence will overpower his mind and I can then tell him to cease with that. But to do so too soon risks too much."

"Wise." The other nodded, his hair falling over his shoulder and catching some of the dim candlelight in the room. "A good assessment. You are indeed a masterful manipulator."

"Demon," he said with a grin, eyes lighting, becoming more bright than the candles in the room.

"I am well aware." There was a hint of a keening laugh in the other's voice. "We shall see just how soon we can begin breaking him."

"It shouldn't be terribly long. He is already more affected than he knows or will ever admit."

"I'm sure. A practical genius, but miserably inept in these matters. He has been feeding you, though?"

"Yes. He has no idea just how much that alone pulls him under my thrall."

"None of them did. Be wary, though. That bond, as you know, can be easily broken."

"If he is kept away from me for periods of time, yes. He is, however, under constant exposure. As well, I have done nothing he would consider a heinous betrayal."

"Yes, yes. Be on your way, then."

"Thank you."

He turned to go as the man poured himself more wine.

"Oh, one more thing."

The demon paused.

"Yes?"

"Don't let your claws get dull, Sebastian. Complacency will not serve you here."

After a moment, he nodded.

"Yes. Of course. I will speak to you in the coming weeks."

"Good."

He finally turned and left, vanishing into night; the new moon offered no light, giving him plenty of shadow to disappear in.

* * *

><p>"William...?"<p>

He had been mostly asleep, in bed after a long day and enjoying the feeling of Grell's fingertips playing lightly over his side and chest, but he forced his eyes open and pulled his mind through the cobwebbed layers of sleep to focus on his companion.

"Yes-?"

Grell smiled at the instant and still-sleepy reaction.

"...How have you been doing...? You've seemed so stressed lately..."

He thought for a minute, scrubbing at his eyes and realizing Grell had removed his glasses.

"I'm fine, Grell...just dealing with a few things...but everything will balance out soon. I promise."

"Are you sure? I don't want you overworking yourself..."

He leaned forward to press a kiss to the redhead's cheek, his hand carding through the soft locks of Grell's hair.

"I'm sure. Just give me a few more weeks to sort things out, alright?"

Grell sighed softly, but nodded after a moment.

"But if you haven't sorted it out by then..."

"We'll see about that then. Don't worry about it, Grell."

Again, Grell only nodded, falling silent and resting his head on Will's shoulder, fingers returning to trailing over his skin until he fell asleep.

William sighed more deeply, rubbing the bridge of his nose once he was sure Grell was no longer awake. It was difficult to keep lying to him like this.

_But I'm not lying to him...it won't take much longer for things to balance out...! With Sebastian's help, everything's been going so much more smoothly..._

He neglected to allow himself to think of the more disturbing effects of Sebastian's help, the ones that could wind up wrecking things. After the past few weeks, his works was very close to evening out, with no backlog, but there were times when they were together that his mind strayed. They were in such close proximity so often, and the scent of the demon often pulled up memories he'd just as soon forget as live again and again. They were awful impulses, and they absolutely repulsed him, but at the same time, they were inviting. There was something fascinating about the demon, how he smelled of cold and snow and ice and yet his touch was so warm, his kiss almost burning. He had taunted him time and time again, with mocking comments or just being too close, seeming to want another break, another moment like that first kiss. So far he had been resisting, but it was getting harder and harder...he had taken to carrying one of Grell's neckties in his pocket, rubbing it when he felt near to succumbing, to remind him of the reason he had accepted this deal in the first place. He knew he couldn't trust Sebastian, but he was making things so much easier. In just a week or two, he would have the time to spend with Grell that he had so wanted and needed. All he had to do until then was not fall for the demon's ploys, to remain steady and true to the one he cared so deeply for.

He closed his eyes after coming to that conclusion, resting a hand on Grell's and falling asleep as he swore to himself that he would never fall to the vices the demon embodied.

It seemed scarcely like minutes had passed before he woke again, trembling, covered in a cold sweat, unable to escape even in waking from the phantom hands of the demon, sensually roaming his body as the fiery lips did the same, claws teasing his sides as he left a trail of burning kisses down his chest and stomach. He had woken, convulsing, and had to bite his hand to stifle the name that had risen to his lips; he felt between freezing and burning as he gasped for air.

"William...?"

Grell's voice was sleepy but concerned as he lifted his head, his hand moving from William's shoulder to wrap around his waist.

"I'm fine," he managed through panting breaths, turning to pulls his companion closer, to bury his face in the curve of his neck and his soft, crimson hair. "...Just a nightmare."


	10. Chapter Nine

"I don't think I'll need your help much longer."

Sebastian lifted his head, about to settle in to feed from an unfortunate woman on William's list.

"...Beg pardon?"

"You heard me." William's voice quavered just a bit, but his shoulders were squared and his mind resolute. "The reasons I had for partnering with you have been resolved. I won't need your help much longer."

The demon sighed, leaving the woman slumped on her chair.

_So soon? I should have known...alas, we'll make it work..._

"We never set a time for when I would be leaving."

"And that is why I'm telling you now that it won't be much longer before I dismiss you."

One of Sebastian's eyebrows rose a fraction of an inch in incredulity.

"And if I don't want to go?"

"How would you go about staying."

"Merely by doing what I am now. I have the resources."

William paled a bit, adjusting his glasses, uncertain how to reply.

"Besides," the demon continued. "Even if you did dismiss me and I did go on as I am now, what could you do? Tell them about me? Fine. But when they're sent out to track me and they notice every one I take is one of yours...when they start looking back and realizing they've _all_ been yours...what are _you_ going to do?"

The reaper tried to speak, but could only come up with a stammering response. He hadn't thought of that, and as the demon pressed closer, he found he could hardly think at all.

"I think I'll be staying as long as I please, William." Sebastian's voice was smooth and dark, muffling the sound of the rest of the world somehow, becoming the only thing he could hear. "And why should you complain? Hasn't it made your life so much easier? Hasn't it taken _so much _off your already full plate?"

He couldn't lie; everything Sebastian had said had been true. Working with him made everything so much easier, but the longer they did so, the greater the chance he was found out...

"Don't lie to me, William. I've never lied to you. Are things easier for you now that we're working together?"

"...They are..."

Sebastian was hardly an inch away from him now, but his posture wasn't aggressive; it was easy, almost flirtatious. As William took a step back, he realized that somehow again, he had been pinned to a wall. Half-glancing over his shoulder, he was greeted by the demon's smug, knowing smirk.

"...You don't really _want_ me to leave, do you? You like having me around, though you're loathe to admit it. You can say it to me, William." He gave a soft laugh, leaning in to whisper into the reaper's ear. "After all, who am I going to tell?"

William fought to keep control of himself, to not be swayed by the demon's words and actions. He adjusted his glasses again, trying to move away from the demon, but Sebastian laid a gentle, restraining hand on his cheek. The touch was feather light, but trying to push against it was trying to move a mountain.

"We'll see how you feel in a few week's time," Sebastian suggested, his voice a purring whisper. "If you still wish to dismiss me, we will negotiate. But don't say that just yet." He laughed softly. "Once I'm gone, the work will pile up again, just as it always does. I may still stay here for a bit longer, quietly, not causing any commotion, to give you time to reconsider." The demon licked his lips, tongue brushing lightly and briefly against William's ear. "But we won't think of that now."

William shuddered at the voice in his ear, the feel of the warm breath and especially the sensation of Sebastian's hot tongue on his skin. He was trying his best to resist the inexplicable draw of the demon, to dismiss the things his actions brought to mind, but he couldn't completely stifle the soft groan that rose in his throat.

He felt the demon's lips curl into a grin in reaction to it, just as he felt his cheeks burn in shame. The red-eyed man pulled back just enough to see William's face, his smirk wide, amused, and dangerous.

"My, my..."

"I-I wasn't expecting that-!"

Sebastian laughed as the reaper tried to explain himself.

"You don't have to defend yourself, William..." There was a dark laugh in his voice. "I rather liked the sound..."

About to speak again, William's words died on his lips as Sebastian ran a hand through his hair, the demon's nails skittering lightly over his scalp and teasing the sensitive area at the nape of his neck.

"You're really quite attractive when you're flustered. It happens so rarely." He laughed softly, resting his forehead on William's. "But more frequently as of late, I've noticed."

"I wonder why that is." The reaper's voice was dry, dark, and sarcastic, and only made Sebastian smile more widely.

"You're so entertaining. What would I do with myself if I didn't have you to keep me busy, William? You don't want to consider that, do you?"

The reaper closed his eyes and tried to look away, but Sebastian raised a hand, resting a finger on his cheek.

"Ah, ah, ah...I want an answer. Tell me you'd rather know what I was doing than have me be loose on my own."

"Let go of me, please..."

They both heard the tremble in his voice, not from anger but fear, uncertainty. He didn't like being so close to the demon, so close to losing control. He could feel it the longer they were like this, his mind losing to his body and the desire to give in.

"What's wrong, William?" The voice was little more than a dark whisper, something he could practically see behind his closed eyes, a sensuous black smoke wrapping around them both, pulling them from reality and into a place just a hair's breadth away. There was still the stone wall at his back, still the building around them and the city beyond that, but there was a paper-thin barrier that kept it all away. He could sense it, the same as he could sense the demon's influence.

"Sebastian, please-"

When the demon spoke again, the usual mocking tone was gone from his voice. It was gentle, quiet. The hand pressing against his cheek cupped it instead, a tender gesture.

"What is it? You can tell me anything. I haven't a soul to tell your secrets to. Don't let them weigh on you."

"I can't-"

"It isn't healthy for you, William. Maybe it can't kill you-we're immortal, after all-but it will affect you."

"Sebastian, I can't do this."

"Why not?"

The question was so simple. Why not. _Why not?_ Why not try this thing, break this one taboo. No one had noticed Sebastian's presence. Who would?

_Grell. Think of Grell. Grell would notice._

"William?"

"P-please, just let go-"

"But look at you, so tense...I know why, William. Did you think I wouldn't?" His hand moved, stroking the hair near his temple, slipping to the back of his head as he leaned in to whisper in William's ear. "He'll never know."

"You think I could do that to him-?"

"He wanted to. He wanted to forget all about you. But this isn't about him. This is about you. What you want. You can change your mind any time. But if you don't ever try, this torture won't ever get better. It won't go away, William. Curiosity doesn't work like that. It drives men mad."

"You would say that..." But his voice was weak, and his eyes were open again, staring at the demon's lips as they moved. "I-I don't see how this could work..."

"All he needs to know is that you're getting your work done. That's all anyone needs to know. They shouldn't ask, especially when it comes to you." The familiar grin returned, his eyes lowered this time and smoldering softly, lust coming off of him in waves, his breath playing over William's lips as he spoke. "Everyone knows the devil's in the details..."

He couldn't help the soft groan again, fighting with every ounce of his being to remain under his own control. But it was impossible to resist any longer. For so long-too long-he had fought. He was exhausted by the demon, and finally gave in, resting his head back against the wall. He watched Sebastian's smile grow even wider as he sensed the reaper's defeat, regarded by the cool green eyes in a way the showed both his disgust and desire.

He was quick to jump on the moment of weakness, pressing up against the reaper and speaking softly, lips brushing William's as they moved.

"This is a heavy decision, William..."

He gave the demon a flat glare, reaching up to take the demon's glasses off and fling them aside.

"Shut up already."

"Full of surprises today, aren't you..." He laughed softly, pressing closer.

The reaper's expression was still the flat glare, thinly masking the hateful desire beneath as he reached up to grab a hank of the demon's hair. But Sebastian was quicker, dipping his head to press his lips to William's throat. The reaper let out a ragged gasp, not expecting the touch on such a vulnerable place. Sebastian gave a soft, dark laugh, his tongue trailing over William's throat and up to the hollow just behind his ear, drawing a breathless moan and a violent shudder from him. His hand finally settled on Sebastian's hair, clenching around it to have something to hold on to as the demon continued to abuse his ear. William's knees buckled at the demon's fanged teeth closed gently on the sensitive skin of the lobe of his ear, and for a moment he thought he would fall, but then he felt Sebastian's arms around him, holding him up. It was the touch he was familiar with, hardly felt but impossible to break. As the teasing ministrations continued, his free arm came up to wrap around the demon. Sebastian's hold on him tightened for a moment then, and he pushed up against the reaper as he took the man's wrists and pinned them to the wall. Pulling back from the kiss, Sebastian smiled at him for a moment, noting the way the act of aloofness had all but vanished.

"Sensitive, are we?"

William could only give a small sound in response, aching for more. More of his heat, more of his touch, more of the taste and scent of him.

"What is it, William?"

Sebastian was close enough to him that he could feel his breath, but craning his neck he still couldn't quite reach the demon's lips. He almost wasn't aware as he breathed a word.

"More..."

There was an odd sound, almost like a large cat purring, as Sebastian smiled and flicked his tongue over William's lips.

"What?"

"M-more..."

He was slower this time, more languid about it as he traced the reaper's lips with his tongue. Both surprisingly and not, he felt William respond in kind, his actions a bit clumsier, too desperate for finesse. He finally acquiesced, pressing his mouth hard to the reaper's and carefully exploring every inch of his mouth. William let out a guttural moan, hands clenching but still held against the wall. After a moment, he seemed to gather himself enough to respond more skillfully, sucking on Sebastian's tongue until he was rewarded with a low groan. This was beyond entertaining to the demon, who let him take the lead this time. Releasing William's wrists, he allowed himself to be turned and thrown against the wall, the kiss never broken. The reaper pinned his hands this time, and though he could have easily overpowered William, he allowed it. This was proving interesting. He let his eyes close as William methodically explored his mouth, the demon nipping and teasing now and then. To his delight and surprise, William was incredibly skilled, drawing another lustful moan from him. At the sound, the reaper redoubled his efforts, releasing Sebastian's wrists but grabbing a fistful of his hair tight enough to cause a twinge of pain. The demon smiled against his lips at the feeling, his hands sliding into William's hair. He laughed softly as his head was jerked down to what was apparently a better angle for the reaper. This was far more enjoyable than he thought it would be, feeling him give into his darkest desires. Already, the crisp, clear taste of the reaper-not unlike the sharp, almost sweet taste of a glass of cold water on a sweltering day-was becoming smoky and muddled by a different flavor. He rather enjoyed it, relishing William's taste while he could. The sinful saint, the reformed rouge; they were all the same when it came to the taste. He would settle for glimpses of it. He could make the man bleed later, when his mind was more malleable, and taste more strongly then. For now he could delight in the way the reaper was teasing the more sensitive areas he'd discovered, one hand still locked in his hair as the other travelled to his waist, then lower to grab hold. Pulling Sebastian to him, their hips ground together, and both men let out a moan. It was hard to say who reacted first, as both sought to create more friction between them. Eventually Sebastian pulled away from the heated kiss, biting almost to hard at William's lips as he spoke.

"I'm impressed, William..."

"Shut up."

With that, he drew away enough to grab Sebastian by his lapels, and with surprising strength, lifted him and laid him out on the sturdy wooden table behind them. There was that purring sound again as the demon's eyes flashed crimson, glowing in the dimness of the room. He propped himself up on his elbows, legs hanging off the table, and watched as William tugged his gloves off with his teeth.


End file.
